


Vanish

by Abscisio



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Drama, Friendship, Gen, Rewrite, Sabrina-centric, Some Shipping but not the main focus, Strained Friendships, because Antibug could have been so much more
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-16
Updated: 2016-07-16
Packaged: 2018-07-24 09:40:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7503393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Abscisio/pseuds/Abscisio
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>These games of give and take began a long time ago, and now Sabrina is just about fed up with their friendship. Chloé still doesn't understand where they went wrong.</p>
<p>Sabrina-centric rewrite/expansion of "Antibug."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Vanish

**Author's Note:**

> Hi. I'm new to MLB so I don't really know how fanon views Chloe and Sabrina but I wanted the episode "Antibug" to be more than it was. The dynamic between Chloe and Sabrina has so much potential, and I think toxic friendships are something everyone can relate to. So I rewrote it and made it more complex, maybe a little darker. idk if I did it justice but please enjoy

 

The games of give and take and pretend began in second grade*, on the playground at the école.

"I'm Chloé Bourgeois," she said, and flipped over on the railing of the monkey bars. She hung upside down by the bend in her knees, and she had a gap in her teeth.

"My name is Sabrina." Sabrina had just gotten her glasses and was afraid to play on the playground, so she sat on the wooden platform before the monkey bars began. Instead of playing, she held a bag of strawberries, which she had been nibbling on for the past twenty minutes.

She kicked her legs back and forth as she watched Chloé dance around on the bars.

"I'm playing a game," the blonde said. She backflipped onto the ground and brushed off her shorts. They were yellow, with a black belt and a ruffled white shirt tucked into them. Even as a child, Chloé had dressed fashionably.

"What game?" Sabrina asked.

Chloé grinned, twirling her curly blonde hair around her finger. "I call it 'Damsel in Distress.'"

"Is it fun?"

"Of course it's fun." She remembered the way Chloé pointed at her - finger curved ever so slightly, the nail smooth and pearly white, like a seashell. "But in order to play with me, first you have to give me one of your strawberries."

"Oh, sure…" She reached into the plastic bag.

"Not that one." Chloé tugged on the sleeve of her cardigan. "That one is small. I want the big one."

Sabrina obliged. Chloé leaned forward on the platform, dangling the strawberry by its leaves. "What's that on your sweater?"

"A brooch." It was silver and elven-like, with the metal wires curving delicately into the shape of a flower. Sabrina had found it in the basement the other day. She thought it would look fashionable with her outfit. She'd always felt self-conscious about the way she dressed, since most of the girls at the école came from rich families and wore designer clothing on a daily basis.

"Can I see?" Chloé held out a hand.

"Sure."

Chloé took it from her, then flashed her a smile. She took a bite of her strawberry. "Let's play."

-

(The game they had played had wound up getting Marinette Dupain-Cheng in trouble for cutting Chloé and Sabrina on the line for the swings multiple times. Chloé had indeed played damsel in distress, and she had eaten all of Sabrina's strawberries. Sabrina never received the brooch back.)

-

Sabrina sat in the classroom and looked out the window, dreaming of those days.

She felt a tap on her shoulder. Chloé was standing at the desk, her bag slung over her shoulder, her sunglasses slightly askew. "What are you staring off into space for? I'm leaving."

Sabrina jolted, knocking her pens off of the desk. "Oh, I'm sorry!"

"Save it. I can't be late to my next appointment at Jean-Claude's because right after that I'm going to the hotel. Get your act together and let's go already."

"I'm invited to your appointment too?"

Chloé didn't answer, simply strolled out of the desk and into the aisle, her long, blonde ponytail swishing behind her. "Hurry up. The car is here," she said, thumbing through the messages on her phone. As she walked past Adrien, she looked up and winked. He just stared before returning to his conversation with Nino. They left shortly after Chloé had taken her exit.

"Can you believe her? She treats Sabrina like she's a dog. And she waltzes about, flirting and winking like everyone loves her!" Sabrina heard Marinette cry. Alya muttered words of agreement, to which Marinette began shouting once again. Did the girl even realize how loud she was?

As Sabrina gathered up her school supplies, she continued listening, watching them descend down the stairs out of the corner of her eye.

"She completely sniped at me in physics today. It's unfair. I literally can be doing nothing to her and she'll find some way to treat me like garbage." She saw a flash of gold as Marinette closed the small pouch that rested on her hip. "And what sucks is that it isn't just me. It's _everyone_ . She treats _everyone_ like garbage. But she loves to target me the most, I think."

"Yes, we've established that a long time ago, Marinette," said Alya, grimacing and touching her friend on the shoulder. "I just wish she didn't bother you so much. You've got so much going for you. Don't let her get to you."

Their voices faded as they left the classroom. When Alya encouraged Marinette like that, it seemed like honey rolling off of her tongue, like her words came easily and naturally. The way they interacted with one another sometimes sent a jolt at her gut, like she was being tugged around inside.

Sabrina zipped up her bag. It was Chanel. They'd bought it together on the Champs Elysées last autumn - she and Chloé.

Surely Alya and Marinette didn't do things like that. Not at Chanel.

"Why _are_ you friends with her?" Alix asked as she lumbered down the aisle. Sabrina scowled until she realized who was speaking. "I gave up a long time ago."

She and Chloé and Alix used to be an inseparable trio for a short time, until Alix broke away and became a singular, loner tomboy*. When they were in 6th grade, they'd gone to the cinema almost every week together and lounged around at Chloé's hotel afterwards, eating popsicles and watching TV.

Then Alix changed, and those days were gone. But Sabrina still had a soft spot for her, for those sleepovers, for those days skating in the park.

"Chloé and I are best friends," Sabrina insisted.

"Yeah, okay. Listen." Alix ran a finger through her hair, which stuck up in every place imaginable, no matter how hard she tried to tame it. There were several new band-aids and scars on her elbows, probably from skating. "You're probably the smartest girl in the class. And you let her take advantage of you."

"She's not taking advantage of me."

"Oh, really?" Sabrina could see the laugh blooming on her lips. She felt her throat tighten as Alix continued. "What is she doing then when she makes you do her homework? What does she do for you aside push you around and bribe you?" Alix put her hands on her hips. "I'm just trying to help you. Sabrina, you deserve better."

Sabrina slung her bag over her shoulder and turned her face away. She didn't understand the expression in the girl's eyes. She left her desk, stepping into the aisle. "I didn't ask for you to interrogate me, thank you very much. I don't need or want your help."

She hugged her books to her chest, ignoring the tight wave (of guilt? of remorse?) rolling through her stomach to her fingertips.

"And not to mention that she's made you a total bitch," Alix called after her. "You used to be cool and sweet."

Sabrina whipped around, her hair flying into her face, catching in her glasses. "What do you know about me? You don't know me. You don't talk to me anymore. Chloé is the only person who understands me. And I'm one of her closest friends."

"Her only friend, because no one is an idiot enough to actually want to be friends with a psycho like her."

Alix's eyes had a shine to them, triumphant like when she had won a rollerblading contest or opened a Christmas present that her father had refused to buy but she'd persistently begged for. Sabrina was cornered.

Sabrina's cheeks burned, a strange feeling she tried to stifle with a gulp.

Her voice was shaky. "Just leave me alone."

She wished that she could be invisible so that Alix and the rest of the students in the classroom couldn't see the way her eyes began to water behind her glasses.

A part of her wondered if Alix was right. Chloé was selfish and abrasive. It wasn't as though Sabrina were oblivious to the way she'd always coax her with expensive designer gifts, or get under her skin about her grades or her crushes to make her do what she wanted.

But Chloé didn't have anyone else. And neither did Sabrina. And Sabrina just wanted to do the right thing.

When she got outside, she stood for a moment on the stairs, collecting her thoughts. Chloé's car was still parked there, waiting for her. Inside the car, Chloé had her chin resting on her hand, her elbow leaned out the open window in the passenger's seat.

When she spotted Sabrina, she shouted, "Hey, Sabrina! You're slowing me down. Get in the car already!"

 _What did they know?_ , Sabrina thought, clenching her books tighter. Her bag seemed to dig into her shoulder.

Chloé had waited for her. Sure, she had acted as though Sabrina had committed some terrible crime by holding her up, but that was just Chloé. Chloé was always like that. Chloé, fiery and ambitious. Chloé, who was always so forward about what she wanted, who wore her heart on her sleeve. Chloé, who always made sure that Sabrina was right next to her, right by her side.

She clenched her fists and walked down the stairs.

No one but Sabrina knew about their sleepovers, and all of their three A.M. conversations. No one else knew that Chloé was scared of spiders and her father leaving her home alone at night. No one else had seen the way Chloé could cry, like when she lost her mother or her favorite stuffed animal in 4th grade.

Only Sabrina understood. Chloé needed Sabrina. And Sabrina needed to feel needed.

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. For simplicity's sake, I'm using the American school system as age reference.  
> 2\. According to the MLB Wikia, Chloe, Sabrina, and Alix were supposed to be a trio at some point in reference to Totally Spies.


End file.
